


Happier Here With You

by Watch_Out_For_Them



Category: Fallout 3
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Gen, Sharing a Bed
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-17
Updated: 2019-01-17
Packaged: 2019-10-11 14:15:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17448554
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Watch_Out_For_Them/pseuds/Watch_Out_For_Them
Summary: It's too late to be out and about in the Capital Wasteland, and you just want to sleep. But, it seems the wasteland was on your side tonight; not far in the distance, there's a prewar home, the perfect place for you, Butch, and Dogmeat to stow away for a night in safety. A single problem arises, though; there's only one bed. And despite being happy to share all your armor, ammo, and weapons, Butch isn't so sure about sharing a bed with you...





	Happier Here With You

**Author's Note:**

> ngl I've been playing fallout 3 a lot lately and among other things, everytime I go to sleep in a bed (with no other beds around) I think to myself "hmm we're gonna have to cuddle real close in this bed huh Butch" and like, I just had to get those feelings out.

It was good to have company in the wastes, and even better to have some company you enjoyed. Butch may have been kind of an ass to you growing up, but he’s changed. But perhaps it was never really his intention to be mean in the first place? There wasn’t much too do in the vault besides maintenance, gossip, and sleeping. Though you had to fight for survival out here in the wastes, neither of you would really have it different. 

Admittedly, you never thought you would be good in a fight; you took after your father in that science and medicine just came more naturally to you. When you first had been forced out of the vault, shaken, scared, and actually alone for the first time in forever, you didn’t think you and that measly 10 mm could do anything.  
But that was the past and Vault 101 would never again be home to you, due to your own mistakes. Perhaps, though, seeing Butch, and how happy he seemed now outside the vault was the only piece of home you needed. 

Recently, the two of you had been wandering, with little direction. Reilly wanted map markers, and you needed some caps, so you’ve been out for about a week now without returning to your home in Megaton. Most of the time, you're lucky enough to find a nice place to sleep, but tonight had been rough. Raiders seemed to be everywhere, and by the time you had finally either killed them all of gotten far away the chase didn’t seem worth it, you were in very unfamiliar territory, and it had to be nearing 1 in the morning. 

“Man, that was rough. But those Raider’s didn’t even see us comin!” Though he spoke with such excitement, a yawn followed his words. “We ought to find a place to crash tonight, though. The Butch-man needs to rest so he can give it his all.” You shook your head but smiled nonetheless. 

“Look ahead. Looks like a prewar house.” You pointed just up a hill. The houses around it were pretty much gone (you would rummage around for anything good in the morning) but one remained the was still upright, with a working door. It was pretty small, though, usually, the houses in the Capitol wasteland were all two-story, but this was just a flat. 

“Aww sweet, its always nice finding a place with a working roof!” Butch ran ahead, Dogmeat happily running after him to the house. You smiled one more and followed them at a slower pace. Butch reached the door before you and flung it open, only to have a coughing fit. “Man its like this place has been opened in years.” He waved away some dust from his face and finally entered the flat, with you and Dogmeat following after him. 

“If we’re lucky we might not even have to move bodies or skeletons from the beds.” You meant to tell it as a joke but Butch was too busy moving back to the rooms. You turned on your pip boy light to see better and were happy to see several pre-war books lying around. Some you could give to scribe Yearling and others you could keep. Butch had been quiet for a while though, probably because he had already got into a bed. “Hey, everything alright here? We can search for goodies in the morning, but for now, I just want to sleep...” You slowly stopped speaking, seeing Butch just standing in the only room in the back of the house. “Butch?”

“There’s… There’s only one bed.” He had a frown on his face, eyeing the dusty blankets with disdain. “There’s gotta be another bedroom. O-or a couch!” His voice was a little frantic, but you were already stepping out of your power armor. 

“I didn’t see anything like that on my way in.” You didn’t see the problem in sharing a bed, hell you were just happy it wasn’t a single sized one; it was at least queen sized, plenty of room for the both of you, and Dogmeat if he felt so inclined. 

“You don’t see the problem here?” He was still in his own power armor, hands to his head while looking at you. 

“What, scared of cooties like you are rad roaches?” You teased, pulling up the blanket to give it a good shake. You coughed a bit, but at least you wouldn’t be sleeping with as much dust as you could have been. 

“T-that’s not it at all. I just...” Butch looked down bashfully, mumbling out some words. 

“What was that?” Now you were wiping away the last of the dust of ages off the bed, looking to Butch as he still looked to the ground. 

“Nothing I just...” He let out a sigh. “Look it like, makes me uncomfortable is all.” He said softly, finally stepping out of his power armor. You flushed a little but tried to remain fun and calm in this situation. 

“You’re welcome to sleep on the ground with Dogmeat, then.” Said dog was looking up at him expectantly, and Butch smiled before bending down to pet him, not giving you an answer. “But… really, I don’t mind Butch. You have to make do out here, and if we’re going to be traveling together for a while you’re going to have to get used to it.” You sat on the side of the bed, gazing to him as he stayed fixated on Dogmeat. 

“Aww man, I know that but… You know what, it’s fine. I’ll be fine.” He sighed, shaking his head and moving to sit on the other side of the bed. Most of the time, the two of you had slept in the armor you wore under your power armor; the other locations weren’t as safe as this one, but here you felt like you could get a good nights sleep (but, you supposed there was only so much a locked door could do to someone who really wanted to kill you). 

“Hey.” You smiled to him as he sat on the other side of the bed. “We should take this chance to get a good nights rest. We’re pretty safe here, and we may not get a chance like this until we can make it back to Megaton, so take tonight to get comfortable if you want.” With that, you casually began to take off your leather armor as well. 

“Y-you know, I think I’m good.” Butch pointedly looked away from you as you took off your pants, and shirt as well. He was still wearing the vault suit and tunnel snakes jacket, but you shrugged. 

“Suit yourself, tough guy.” You would have left him be, but the urge to tease him was too strong. “But its gonna make cuddling awfully hard.” You sighed wistfully and caught a glace of his blushing and bewildered face. 

“Man you’ve got to stop this….” You barely heard his whisper as he shook his head. “Are you being real with me?” 

“I mean, do you want me to be?” Your own voice was kind of wavering, and you realized you were, in fact, of your own volition, sitting there in only your bra and underwear before Butch, who was having some trouble keeping a straight face and looking you in the eye. “I was just teasing you a little but…” You weren’t quite sure what your next words would be, what they should be to ease the growing tension between the two of you. 

“I-I dunno!” He looked away, and you could swear in the faint light from both of your pip boys, a blush dusted his cheeks. “Just, be straight with me, okay? No teasing, no games...” He shook his head and met your eyes once more. “What are we?” Now it was your turn to look away, to bite your bottom lip and mull over the words yourself. What really, were you? You had know Butch your entire life, and it was hardly months between your initial departure and when you came back. And you hadn’t always seen eye to eye, admittedly but… what had changed between the two of you so quickly in these few weeks roaming the wastes together? 

“What… what do you want us to be, Butch?” But, perhaps nothing has changed. Maybe this was just a long time coming. 

“Well.. what do you want us to be _____?” It struck you, then, that Butch didn’t often call you by name; usually, he had some sort of nickname, or in the past, insult but… it wasn’t often your name rolled off his tongue. You found you enjoyed the way he said it though, it was sweet and kind of small, almost as if he wasn’t sure he was even allowed to call you by name. If you enjoyed it that much, it was obvious what you wanted. 

“I want… us to be able to be happy together, no matter what this wasteland throws at us.” You admitted, hesitantly moving to rest your hand over his. “This may be a weird way of showing it but… I want to be close to you, even if I can’t promise us some comfortable vault to be together in.” Butch smiled, and shook his head, laughing a bit. 

“We’re young, who wants to go be comfortable in Vault 101? I’m happier never stepping into one of those damn things again.” You smiled now too, running your thumb over the top of his knuckles. “It hasn’t been long, but even I can see, you and your dad are big players out here. I don’t know where its gonna take you, but I know I want to be a part of it. Because...” He shied away a moment, unsure if he really wanted to admit it allowed to himself (and you as well.) “...because I’m happiest when I’m out in the wastes with you and Dogmeat, and every day brings something new, even if it isn’t always good.” He had a stupid, goofy smile on his face, one that you found was contagious and met your features too. 

“Yeah… yeah me too.” How could you explain to him how much that touched you, how for a long while out here, before you found dad and met other companions, you felt so alone? Half a year ago, you would have never guessed that the person to help quell that dull ache of loneliness you felt would be someone from Vault 101. So, you were rendered speechless, smiling at him with shining eyes and beating heart. 

“So um...” Even after the both of you saying all that, Butch was still shy, still looking away and struggling to look anywhere but your face, your eyes, and god forbid your body. “Do you… still want to cuddle?”


End file.
